


Winter Tree: Roots

by Yemi Hikari (Yemi_Hikari)



Series: Winter Tree [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender, Voltron: Lion Force (1984)
Genre: Backstory, Family, First Meetings, Friendship, Gen, Implied Altean/Galra Krolia, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Keith & Ryou (Voltron) are Twins, Keith & Shiro (Voltron) are Biological Siblings, Keith & Shiro (Voltron) are Ful Siblings, NaNoWriMo, NaNoWriMo 2020, Past Rape/Non-con, Prequel, Teacher-Student Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-05
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:07:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27398482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yemi_Hikari/pseuds/Yemi%20Hikari
Summary: At the Garrison, Keith Kogane was known for his innate ability for getting things done with his team comprised of himself and his fellow cadets, Lance McClain and Hunk Garet. He was also known for his innate ability for getting in trouble with his team, driving multiple mentors away. In steps the teams newest mentor Sven Holgersson, one they don't expect to last long like usual.
Relationships: Keith & Lance (Voltron), Keith & Sven (Voltron)
Series: Winter Tree [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1828300
Kudos: 9
Collections: A Whisper to the  Dark Side, MinorFandomFest, Platonic Relationships, Siblings, Voltron: Shiro & Keith - Biological Brothers





	1. Introductions

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer - I don't own Voltron (DotU) or Voltron: Legendary Defender. This is one of my NaNoWriMo projects for 2020 and a prequel to Winter Tree with a focus on the DotU characters. In effect, I'm bringing some of the headcanons I like using in the VLD universe into the DotU universe, but I'm also bringing in a few characters as well. The events take place before the original Votron show canon and is in a way "how they met" kind of story.

“I’m interested in Keith Kagone.”

Warning bells went off in Commander Iverson’s head as he found himself staring at his newest transfer to the garrison. His one good eye drifted down to the paperwork in his hand noting Sven Holgersson’s achievement of graduating from the Intergalactic Garrison’s program ranked highest not only at the Norway Garrison but also ranking highly internationally. The young man also for some strange reason came recommended by the commander of the garrison in Japan, Commander Shirogane.

Iverson let out a sigh, feeling yet another headache resulting because of a certain cadet yet said cadet wasn’t even in the room. Sven’s eyes blinked before he spoke in the accent which made him stand out like a sore thumb. “Sir?”

“I don’t think you know what you’re getting into officer Holgersson.” Iverson watched Sven open his mouth to protest and quickly held up his hand indicating he wanted him to listen. “You aren’t the first officer to take an interest in our garrison’s protégée and while it is true that even without the recommendation from Commander Shirogane you are allowed to take any position you want here at the garrison, but you aren’t the first to think of taking advantage of Cadet Kagone’s innate ability along with his teams track record for getting things done.”

Sven fidgeted in his seat, one hand adjusting the carrier bag he carried with him while his mouth pushed together. There was something familiar regarding the way the man fidgeted, even looked at him. Despite the young officer's discomfort, he didn’t feel right letting yet another officer burn out, but he’d recognized the positive go-get-them attitude he’d seen on many other officers wanting to take on the challenge of Cadet Kagone and his team only for them to burn out faster than the ones with a far less bright attitude.

“Cadet Kagone also has an innate ability for getting into trouble as does the rest of his team. More specifically, they’re not known for having much respect for authority figures, but I honestly think they enjoy seeing how long the mentors we’ve placed in charge of mentoring _them_ last.”

“That honestly doesn’t surprise me, given how many foster homes Keith’s been in.”

Iverson’s one good eye blinked, his mouth opening in disbelief, but then he stammered out, “How did you know that? You’re not yet an instructor here and thus you don’t have access to the student’s records.”

Sven let out a sigh, before twisting slightly so he could open up his carrier bag. “I think there’s been a misunderstanding sir because I definitely didn’t transfer with the intent of being the mentor for Keith’s team.” A folder slipped from the bag and Sven pushed the object towards Iverson. “In fact, I’d argue _that_ would be considered a conflict of interest on my part.”

“A conflict of interest?” Iverson let out a deep breath, pulling the folder forward and opening it up.

“I will admit sir, that the reason for my transfer is because of Keith and I am using the fact I am able to get any job I want at any garrison and my connection to the Shirogane family to that end, but I didn’t come here intending to be the mentor of his team,” Sven said while Iverson read over the papers.

What he read made the commander do a double-take. “This…” Iverson swallowed. “I need to double-check this. Could you please step outside of my office while I make some phone calls?”

“I… yes sir.”

When Sven left, Iverson turned to his phone, hesitating ever so slightly before picking the receiver up so he might make a phone call over the secure line, albeit in the back of his mind he wondered if _this_ was an appropriate use of said line. The person on the other line picked up. “ _This is Commander Shirogane of the Japanese Garrison speaking._ ”

“I’m calling regarding a young officer named Sven Holgersson.”

“ _I see. He transferred to your garrison because of Cadet Kagone, but I’ve heard via word of mouth that Cadet Kagone’s been giving you trouble._ ”

“And?”

“ _Officer Holgersson should have shown you the paperwork, so you should already understand what my position regarding the matter is._ ”

“Then the information in the file he provided me is accurate?”

Silence. Then, “ _Yes. Let me make something clear. I am not impressed with the number of mentors Cadet Kagone and his team have gone through since he entered the high school program at your garrison, but I suggest putting Holgersson in charge._ ”

“Sir?”

“ _I’m far from pleased with how it's been handled so far, but I don’t want to intervene in the matter._ ”

That in turn ended the conversation. The phone clicked down and Iverson paged Sven Holgersson to come back in. The young officer sat down in the chair, his jaw twisting as his eyes focused on the wall to his right as if he were thinking of something. “Holgersson?”

“I was just thinking…” the young man said, only for his head to snap to attention, his focus on Iverson. “Never mind.”

“No, I want to know _what_ you’re thinking.” After all, anything involving a certain cadet often proved unpredictable, but the same applied to anything involving Commander Shirogane.

“Just that, given the fact he’s not fond of authority figures me just showing up out of the blue and announcing my presence wouldn’t go over well, but if I were to approach him as the mentor to his team…” Sven cleared his throat. “That is though a conflict of interest.” He then followed with, “I take it Commander Shirogane confirmed what is in the folder.”

“You shouldn’t trust your grandfather.”

Sven’s eyes blinked, his breath coming in a slightly hitched manner. “Sir?”

“Just be aware of the fact your grandfather and father often didn’t see eye to eye. Also…” Iverson honestly couldn’t believe he was doing this. “I think you should be in charge of Cadet Kagone’s group.”

“Sir?”

“You heard me Officer Holgersson.”

“What about the conflict of interest?” Sven swallowed.

“I don’t think your personal conflict of interest even compares to the conflict of interest of the previous mentors wanting to use Cadet Kagone to further their own career paths, but it also won’t be easy. You’ll have to also contend with Lance McClain and Hunk Garret to deal with.”

“Sir, are you really that desperate?”

“I really am that desperate Holgersson, but those cadets are in need of major intervention.” After all, something told Iverson that Commander Shirogane would get involved if things didn’t actually change for the better in regards to a certain cadet.


	2. Recon

“So,” Lance leaned against the lockers next to Keith’s personal locker, stretching his arms up into the air while moving his head back and forth so he might also loosen up his neck muscles as well. Keith fumbled with the contents of his lock while his two friends waited for him to decide what his plans in regard to class attendance would be. “Rumor has it we have a new teacher for our History class.”

“Wait. So there’s no more substitute teacher to terrorize,” Hunk said from across the way where he leaned up against the lockers with his arms crossing his bulky frame. His mouth twisted into a frown as if disappointed with this fact.”

Keith on the other hand stopped fumbling around with the contents of his locker and said, “I’m not going.”

“Figured as much, given the fact you _hate_ meeting new people, particularly adults.” Lance smiled at his friend while Keith slammed his locker shut, the look on his face indicating he was indeed far from thrilled regarding the news before he turned away and headed towards their current place for escaping authority figures who might come looking for them, leaving his book bag behind. Lance leaned down and grabbed the book bag, saluting Hunk. “You’re in charge of taking notes big guy.”

Hunk glowered at his friend, yet didn’t argue the matter.

As Lance ambled away, he called out over his shoulder. “Come on! We all know big guy that despite your looks you _hate_ missing out on class, but Keith really does appreciate the notes. And we’ve tried me taking notes for him before. It didn’t work.”

Hunk let out a sigh, heading to class with only the device assigned to students so they might take notes in class and even look up information in the electronic version of their textbooks. Keith still lugged around the heavy textbooks, accredited by certain students to the fact he was able to use such things as a weapon should he get into a fight which made the question of why the teachers at the garrison school even allowed him to have the books.

There were a lot of rumors among the other cadets where Keith was concerned.

Hunk slipped into the classroom, sitting down in a chair at one of the desks looking rather out of place because of his large size. The hulking giant ignored the looks of discomfort at his presence given by his fellow cadets and simply opened up his device so he might take notes, setting it gently onto the top of his desk, but not before he checked Lance’s message about taking good notes regarding the new teacher. He then waited for the bell to ring and the new teacher to come in.

One of the first things Hunk noted regarding the teacher was the man’s Asian features which led to Hunk typing into the file he’d started up regarding the teacher. The name was left as “???” while he typed Asian into the spot for the man’s ethnicity. A few of his classmates glanced up, thinking he was sending messages, possibly for some heinous plan he and his friends concocted, yet they didn’t say anything. Nobody messed with any member of their small group like they did when they first came to the garrison.

Then the teacher spoke. He spoke in an accent that was _definitely_ not Asian. “So. I’m Officer Sven Holgersson.”

Hunk frantically put a line through the Asian and wrote, along with their new teacher’s name, that he was definitely not Asian and had some weird European accent. The fact the man’s features were Asian also left his mind while he continued focusing on the man, who glanced around as if expecting something unexpected to happen. After waiting for a brief moment, the man cleared his voice and started taking attendance, but when Hunk’s name was called, he was quite sure the man looked right at him, almost as if sizing him up.

Hunk of course didn’t think anything of this, given the fact he was used to people sizing him up because of his size. The man also seemed interested in Keith and Lance as their names came up, yet this made sense given the fact today they were the only students missing from the class. What happened next caught everyone off guard.

 _It_ started with Sven going to his own device, which seemed completely unprofessional of a teacher, but then messages went off on everyone’s devices, almost as if he were attempting to catch the ones who’d not put their messages on silent off guard, yet in the back of Hunk’s mind he knew the garrison’s message board program was set so that during class hours only the teacher’s messages would, in fact, go off whereas students were locked out of anything but silence.

Everyone looked at the file they’d been sent as Sven spoke up. “So, we’re going to try something we call self-study.” One of the students, the more nerdy ones, raised their hand, standing up partially to give themselves more height than the others. Sven pointed his hand at them. “Yes, Goldstein?”

Which meant Sven already knew _some_ of the students' names, which Hunk typed into his file he would send to Lance. “Aren’t you just being lazy sending us notes like this?”

“Am I? If you actually looked at the end of the notes which are honestly just an outline of what I might have taught in class, you’ll note that there is an assignment due for the next class that you will not be able to complete unless you actually do some of your own diggings. Anyways, class dismissed!”

Hunk watched the teacher walk out of the classroom, his eyes wide, before typing in a note regarding their teacher before sending it on to Lance. He quickly saw a message sent back from Lance. “ _What does this whole not really Asian and actually European thing mean? And what’s up with him dismissing class like that?_ ”

“ _I don’t know. I think he’s one of those ones which tries to be nice to their students. You know, the type Keith hates the most because they have a tendency to get up into his business and all._ ”

“ _You mean get up into all of our business, but yeah. I get what you mean bro. Just what I needed when Keith’s already in one of his moods._ ”


	3. Unwanted Mentor

“Rumor has it we have a new teacher for our History class.”

Lance knew what Keith would do when he brought up the rumor of the History class in the same manner he knew exactly where to find Keith. Their latest hangout for getting away from the adults who tried reigning them in was the roof of a hanger which was currently unused. When he arrived, he dropped Keith’s bag unceremoniously next to him before heading to his own spot where he too would enjoy watching the clouds go by but not before lighting up a cigarette he definitely shouldn’t have.

After a slight amount of time, Hunk sent a text with rather confusing information regarding their new history teacher. “So, Hunk’s going to be heading over here soon I think.”

“That was rather quick.”

“According to Hunk, the teacher is one of those. You know, the old softy ones who like being on their students' good sides.”

“Could we please not talk about the new teacher?”

“Yeah, yeah. Sure. We don’t have to talk about the new teacher.” Lance turned his phone off and slid it into his pocket before enjoying another swig of the cigarette. While it didn’t do anything to calm Keith’s nerves, it did calm his and he found himself better able to deal with his friend. He heard footsteps on the roof of someone approaching and waved the hand with the cigarette in the air. “Not only do I _hope_ you’ve brought snacks Hunk, but I hope you didn’t eat all of them.”

“Hello.”

Lance sat up straight, nearly dropping the cigarette. He quickly tossed it onto the ground and stared at the young man standing there, in the uniform the adults wore. He definitely did have what looked like Asian features but spoke in an accent one would expect from someone in Asia. Worse, he leaned right over Keith, a smile on his face while Keith looked up at the adult who’d dared to interfere yet again in his life. There was no way this was going to go well.

“Fuck you.”

Particularly with Keith’s first words to the man being expletives. Lance let out a sigh as Keith started sitting up and the man backed up to let him do so. The man continued smiling. “Well, that’s no way to respond to someone you don’t know.”

“But I _do_ know who you are.” Keith stood up and dusted himself off while Lance moved to his side, glaring at the intruder but also knowing this would mean they would have to now find a different spot. “You’re the new History teacher.”

“I’m also the new mentor for your group Keith.”

“Say what?” Keith looked at the man vehemently, which was never good and Lance stepped closer. Male teachers were honestly the worst, but because the team was all-male they were always assigned a male teacher – although some said this was because of Lance’s penchant to flirt with anyone of the opposite sex.

“While I do like the idea of everyone have a free study for our class period – I mean, it wasn’t quite fair for you to take a free study period yourselves was it, I would much rather you be in class.”

“Why you…” Which of course resulted in Keith suddenly lunging at the man, his breath flaring dangerously while Lance quickly grabbed him from behind knowing _exactly_ what kind of trouble Keith would be in lest. Lance glared at the man, also irritated in the fact he’d purposefully planned the early release and self-study _because_ of their behavior and showed such disapproval.

“Keith, don’t. Don’t get into a fight with a teacher, of all people. Not when he first got here.” Lance felt a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach with this one and refused to look the man in the eye, instead stood there trying to cool his friend’s temper.

“Oh. You want to fight me?” The man seemed amused.

“Yes! Yes, I do!”

“Actually, you know what. That isn’t a bad idea.” The man saying this almost made Lance let go of Keith, but his head glanced up at the man in disbelief as he pulled out his phone. Dread filled the pit of his stomach, the worry that this would be one of those teachers who took things to the extreme where Keith was involved, such as physically beating him down only to thankfully be kicked out. He fiddled a bit and then said, “There. Scheduled.”

“Scheduled?” Keith glared at the man, still furious at how the adult tried butting in, and far quicker than the others. In Lance’s mind, this man was a monster, the exact opposite of what Hunk said.

“Yes. Check your device. You do have it on you, right?”

Lance relaxed a bit as Keith fumbled, his hand reaching in his pocket. He didn’t let go though, not even when Keith looked at his assigned itinerary. “Wait? A sparring match?”

“From the looks of it, it might do you some good to get some of that pent up energy out, right?”

Lance’s jaw dropped, looking at the man. “Wait…”

“Oh, and it’s Sven Holgersson by the way, though the three of you – I see Hunk isn’t here yet, have permission to call me Sven.” The man smiled. “And yes, I was actually looking forward to seeing you three in class today and what kind of pranks you would come up with to try and drive me away.” Keith glared at him, continuing to fume, his fists clenched. The man waved at them. “Anyways. See you two later. Let Hunk know I hope to see all three of you in my class tomorrow.”

“What the hell is his problem?” Keith snapped, just as Hunk came up on the roof, looking at their new teacher in surprise. He watched the man leave.

“Okay. What just happened?” Hunk carried an arm loaf of snacks. “And I didn’t let the new teacher know where we are,” their friend said after Sven left. “Promise.”

“I know you didn’t.” Lance let go of Keith. “And honestly, I don’t know what’s up. One moment you think that guys going to lay into you and then he acts like those nice teachers.”

“He wants something,” Keith jerked his shoulders, then folded his arms across his chest. “They always do. I’m not…” There came a pause. “Let’s just drive him away before it gets that far, okay?”

“Yeah.” Lance watched his friend carefully. “Question is, are you going to that sparring match?”

“That…” Keith let out a sigh. “Honestly, I don’t know what the best response is to that.”

“What sparring match?”

“Genius over here let our new mentor know he wouldn’t mind laying in a few well-placed punches.”

“Ah Keith, did you have to?”

“Well, at least the teacher made it so Keith can punch the living daylights out of him without getting put into solitary.”

“Yeah, but the garrison is really getting…” Hunk’s comment made Keith glared at him. “Uh, never mind. Let’s have some snacks.”

“Good idea, Hunk my man. I hope you brought Keith and my favorites. Also, I need a new cigarette.” He plopped down onto the ground across from where Hunk dumped the snacks while Keith sat down and reluctantly took one of the packaged snacks. Lance saw the look on his face, reading his friend carefully. “You know, he’s not going to be like that.”

“You don’t know that. It’s just better to chase them off before things get to that point.”

“What point?” Hunk asked, curious regarding what Keith meant.

“Don’t worry about it,” Lance leaned back onto the palms of his hands. “It’s just Keith not trusting any of the teacher’s kind of stuff.”

“Ah. I get that.”


	4. Doubly Toxic

“Adults suck. Adults really suck,” Keith muttered to himself. Hiding out on the roof of the unused hanger could only last so long before someone in the staff would come looking for them, but the new teacher somehow managed to find their hiding place, meaning they would likely have to find a new spot soon, something he wasn’t looking forward to. The places which were outside out of the view of staff where Lance could freely smoke.

Of course, not hiding meant actually attending class and Keith found himself in his math class which he definitely did _not_ share with Lance or Hunk. His bookbag dropped beside his desk right before she dropped into the desk, wishing the seat wasn’t attached so he could push back easier so he could lean back and look at the ceiling. Of course, looking up at the ceiling meant seeing the face of James Griffin when he came into class.

“I didn’t expect you in class Kagone, given the fact you’d already skipped your first period, but then I’ve never seen you skip Professor Atkinson’s class. He really puts the fear of God in you, doesn’t he, unlike some of our other teachers.”

“Fuck you, Griffin,” Keith gave the other boy the middle finger while narrowing his eyes.

“Mature Kagone, real mature.”

“Boys, I’ve already told you I want no fighting in my classroom.”

“I’ve not gotten into a fight since my first year in middle school division.” James gave Keith a very pointed look meaning he purposefully brought up the one fight they got into in the first few weeks of being there at the garrison. The words regarding his parents not caring still stung. “Unlike some other individuals.”

Keith sat up, leaning forward on one arm glaring at Griffin while the other cadet sat down at his own desk, leaning back ever so slightly and looking quite smug with himself. He felt a hand on his shoulder, making him tense up. “I also heard you were skipping class this morning.” He didn’t look up at the man, a cold running over his entire body, his eyes widening. “See you after class during the lunch period for a tutorial session.”

His throat tightened slightly, bile rising in his throat, but he held it back. The teacher let go of his shoulder and he turned his attention towards James, his mouth pressing together as certain words started forming in his mouth. “F…”

“No cursing in my class Kogane.”

“Yes sir,” Keith lowered his head slightly, his nails digging into the desktop while he took a deep breath before burring his head, not paying the lesson any attention, though he did hear Griffen say something about not having to go to the tutorial sessions if he actually paid attention in class and he did feel the teacher’s device tap the top of his head one time as he went by, making his stomach stir nervously and his fingers dig into the desk again, something everyone chalked up to him having issues.

Eventually, the bell rang and the other students headed towards freedom while he remained stuck having to deal with a certain someone, but he stopped by his locker to drop off his math book, but let his head rest against the open locker, not caring that it would possibly leave temporary marks, his mouth slightly open while his mind lost focus. Hunk speaking drew him back to reality. “Lunch, lunch, wonderful lunch.”

“Good for you, buddy?” Keith smiled at his larger friend, but the way Hunk’s facial features fell he knew something was worrying him.

“Something the matter.”

“I, um, just have a tutorial with Professor Atkinson again.”

“Oh.” Hunk frowned. “Our tutoring sessions not working?”

“More of he _hates_ Atkinson’s tutorials,” Lance stated, giving a quick pat on his back which didn’t at all help Keith feel better.

“Why not just skip?” a third voice chimed in. Keith turned his head to look at the person in question, a smile weakly appearing on his face. Lance of course pointed a finger at his mouth and gagged, but the person in question said, “I already know you don’t like me, McCain. No need to be such a drama queen.”

“You’re one to talk Tamara,” Lance grimaced.

“No Lance, you know…”

“I don’t _care_ that she and Keith are a _thing_. She’s bad…”

Hunk clamped a hand over Lance’s mouth and started pulling him away. Keith stood up, trying to smile at Tamara yet he didn’t really feel it, let alone going through the motions expected of someone in a relationship. She leaned forward, kissing his cheek, not noticing the fact he felt the same way about her as he did someone else, yet he couldn’t explain in his head why, given the fact… “Sorry. The last thing I need is to have him on my case. He’ll hound me until I show up, but you should know that by now.”

“Yeah, but you’re the rebel cadet whose the top of the class, well, minus a few things, but everyone expects…”

“Yeah. Not today. I don’t feel very sociable today.”

He started closing his locker when she said, “Aren’t you going to take your math book with you?”

“Oh. Yeah. Almost forgot.” Reluctantly, he grabbed the book, tucking it under his arm and heading to the professor’s office. With each step, his body grew even tenser, but eventually, he arrived in the place he dreaded. Stepping into the man’s office, his eyes nervously went to the couch, but he avoided looking the man in the eye.

“Be sure to lock the door behind you,” the man said, referring to the already closed door.

The lock clicked while Keith’s teeth ground together, his entire body seething yet knowing punching a teacher would result in being put into isolation given the fact he didn’t have a home to return to, or something worse. He took a deep breath, his back still turned to the man, not at all pleased with having a tutorial session. He turned and looked at the man before starting to unbutton the top of his uniform, so his chest and stomach were exposed.

“Drop the pants already Kagone.”


	5. Hit the Fan

“Shit!” Lance heard Keith’s cursing as he entered the otherwise empty gym, his gloved fist hitting the punching bag while his facial features scrunched up in anger. “Shit, shit, shit!”

“How many times are you going to say shit already?” Lance stated, letting himself slide down the wall. His lighter framed best friend simply responded by punching the bag with even more gusto, a strangled sound of anger coming out of Keith’s mouth indicating things with Professor Atkinson as expected. Merely thinking about the situation made his stomach churn violently, yet there didn’t seem anything he could do about the situation.

Instinctively, he reached into the pocket of his jacket, his fingers rubbing along the top of the box of cigarettes despite the fact he knew he couldn’t smoke in the gym without getting caught, or in the very least getting Keith temporarily banned from one of the few places he found himself able to let off steam after one of Professor Atkinson’s so-called tutorial sessions. One finger pressed into the top while Lance bit down on his bottom lip, remembering when he’d figured out the tutoring sessions actually weren’t tutoring sessions.

Specifically, he’d originally found it hilarious that Keith actually went to the tutoring sessions only for Keith to adamantly remind him that Iverson gave him the ultimatum of passing without actually giving any explanation regarding _what_ would happen if he ended up not passing one of his classes, but Professor Atkinson kindly _did,_ in ways that Lance hadn’t expected him to.

Pass or get kicked out of the program, but more specifically, _nobody_ would bother fighting for Keith due to his disciplinary issues if he did in fact flunk out. The fact they as a team held an unblemished record in real-life missions wouldn’t stop Keith from getting kicked out either, he’d remembered Professor Atkinson saying rather loudly as Keith left his office after one tutoring session, but Lance rarely if ever saw Keith so close to tears that he’d not noticed Keith adjusting his uniform.

Yet, he recollected the fact Keith was doing just that when he looked into some of the messages between Keith and that professor, having snatched up Keith’s personal device on a whim one day in their shared dorm room. He thought it rather funny to read out loud even while holding Keith back, commenting that it would only be funnier if Hunk was there, only for him to later find himself glad Hunk wasn’t there when he found himself strangling on the words which appeared in the messaging.

“ _I’m telling a teacher._ ” Lance started towards the door of their dorm room, furious at the fact Professor Atkinson – well, it wasn’t often he’d seen Keith near tears, yet he also _knew_ Keith didn’t swing that way.

“ _You can’t._ ”

“ _As if I’d let that fucking…”_

 _“I’ll be out on the streets if the garrison finds out! Relationships between commanding officers and subordinates are against the rules!_ ” Which of course brought about the dilemma of actually telling, given the fact ending back on the streets was Keith’s worst nightmare. Streets, Keith told him once, was better than ending up sent to juvi because none of the foster parents wanted a kid with a track record of behavioral issues, particularly anger issues.

“ _Then fucking break up with him, given the fact we both know you don’t want to be screwing that ass hole in the first place._ ”

“ _And have him fail me in his math class? You know as well as I that’s just as bad as the garrison finding out about me screwing a commanding officer!_ ”

“Have you eaten?” Lance asked, still fingering the cigarettes, knowing anger issues really didn’t describe the reason Keith got into fights with the other cadets. Of course, anybody watching Keith punch the stuffing out of the punching bag in the gym would probably think otherwise, not that Lance cared beyond the fact he’d become accustomed to everyone making assumptions regarding everyone on their team. “You know that’s a great way to make Hunk worry about you, right? Because…”

Out of the corner of his eye, Lance saw someone move across the gym towards Keith. He sucked in a deep breath, wishing he’d paid attention like he normally did because normally he’d find himself able to move between anybody who might try picking a fight with Keith _because_ they found him in one of these moods, but for some reason, he’d not even notice the person coming in. Lance opened his mouth, planning on shooting obscenities at the person for either going in for the punch, but more often than not using words which stung until Keith punched them.

“Hey! What…” Lance stopped speaking as their new history teacher and the mentor they did not want coming up behind Keith, hooking his arms underneath and pulling Keith backward, lifting him up slightly off his feet. This of course didn’t prevent Keith from struggling.

“Keith. I need you to calm down.”

“Fucking let me go, you piece of shit!”

“And what? Let you continue hurting yourself?” Lance’s blue eyes blinked, confused regarding what their new teacher was getting at. The man glared at him. “And you McClain? You’re completely okay with your friend here punching his fists to a bloody pulp.” Which did happen a few times, not that any of the adults really cared, leaving him and Hunk – preferably the big guy with his gentle touch – to patch Keith up.

“I said let me go you fucking piece of shit!” Keith continued yelling, making Lance wince knowing full well Keith just cursed out a teacher multiple times, but the fact Keith was coming off a session with Atkinson meant just letting Keith do his thing and not explaining things to Hunk who would in fact do what he felt was the right thing when it wasn’t.

“No. I’m not letting go. It’s going to be okay.”

“Fuck you!”

“Hey. It’s just best to let…” Lance froze upon seeing the new teacher give him a death glare, one he’d only ever received from Keith. Sucking in his breath, the idea that this person _might_ actually go toe to toe with Keith for a while didn’t at all set well, but even the ones that did never managed to last more than a couple of weeks. A month was the longest. He watched the man put pressure on Keith’s neck, then watch Keith’s eyes begin to flutter, almost as if he were losing consciousness and then, he did. The man continued speaking to Keith in a calm tone, but once Keith was unconscious the man threw one of Keith’s arms over his shoulder and started lifting him up from the ground he’d just lowered to him to. Lance’s eyes blinked. “What the fuck just happened?”

“McClain, are you going to help me get Keith to the infirmary or not.”

“Oh. So you’re using his first name and not mine?”

“Lance, will you please help me.”

“You’ve no business…”

“I’m his teacher and his mentor. That makes him losing his shit like this absolutely my business.”


	6. Infirmary

“Wakey, wakey.”

A female voice echoed through Keith’s head but that voice was definitely _not_ the voice he looked forward to hearing in his dreams. He felt the bed he was on, for he was on a bed, shift under the person’s weight as they placed their hands on either side, only to lift up slightly while they took the tip of their braid and tickled his nose. Keith’s nose wrinkled up, one hand swatting her hair away. Grumbling, he said her name. “Tamara…”

“Well, at least you’re able to remember I exist. If you weren’t feeling too great, we could have just gone to the infirmary to make out.”

“Mm… what?” Keith’s eyes remained open, feeling Tamara’s fingers start walking down from the center of his chest to his stomach as she leaned forward, her breath on his face. When she nearly reached the belt of his uniform, his hand shot out, his eyes opening. “I told you. Not in the mood.”

“Well, I can certainly quickly get you into the mood.” Tamara leaned in closer, her lips inches from his own. “You know that I’m _really_ good at getting you into the mood.”

Keith swallowed, still holding onto her hand, wondering if he should just let her have her way with him, thus rendering it over and done with when he heard someone clear their voice. Turning his head, one of the first things he took in was the fact he was in the infirmary, his hands bandaged up, the knuckles stinging. The second was their new teacher and mentor glaring at them as Tamara pulled back from him, twisting so that she might glare at him.

Sven tilted his head in the direction of what Keith assumed was the entrance of the infirmary. “Leave.”

The bed shifted as Tamara got up, letting out a sound of irritation as she did so. Keith glared at the man, noticing he carried a tray of food, the kind normally given to those stuck in the infirmary. “That was none of your business.”

“Really?”

“Just…” Keith closed his eyes, remembering how Sven showed up while he was pummeling the punching bag, interfering in a matter which in Keith’s mind wasn’t any of the man’s business. Flopping back down, his hands at his side. “Fuck off!”

Sven stepped forward, making Keith’s entire body tense up, his teeth gritting together while his mind wondered what the man actually wanted from him, as practically every adult wanted _something._ Sven walked over, setting the tray of food down on the table next to the hospital bed. “Lance said something about you probably not eating anything during lunch.”

Keith tensed up, wondering if Lance said anything regarding Atkinson. His eyes closed, remembering Lance wouldn’t do such a thing, yet he still couldn’t help but wonder _what_ this man wanted. Sucking in his breath. “What the fuck do you want?”

“Want?” Sven reached out, grabbing one of Keith’s wrists, tugging his hand up so they could both see his bandaged hand .”This…”

Keith flinched, pulling his hand away, cradling it to his chest. “Fucking touch me again and I’ll kill you!”

“Wow.” Sven pulled back, but not without hinting at the fact Keith’s words did in fact hurt him as he looked at Keith which only made the cadet even more furious.

“Skrew you!” Keith shifted slightly so he could sit up straighter, angry at yet another adult butting into his life as if they knew what he needed. “Screw you and all the adults! I wish you’d all just go and die already!”

“Well, you certainly have quite the mouth on you, don’t you?” Sven glared at him, a look which screamed bloody murder yet the man didn’t do anything.

The corner of Keith’s mouth twisted. “And what are you going to do about that?”

“Nothing. Curse me out all you want. I honestly don’t care.” Sven stated, crossing his arms and glaring at Keith as Keith’s eyes widened and his mouth fell. “Oh, don’t take that as me not caring, because I _do_ care. I cared enough to haul your ass in here when you were self-harming.”

“I was _not_ self-harming!” Keith snapped, his fists clenching despite the pain he felt in both hands. “I don’t fucking cut! I’m not that stupid.”

“There’s more than one way a person can self-harm, but I’m surprised none of the adults have brought this up with you.”

“All I’m doing is _trying_ to control my temper so I don’t get in trouble. _What_ does it matter if I’m not harming anybody else?” Keith held up his middle finger, glaring at Shiro, not hesitating at all. “Well, guess what? I’m fucking fed up with adults and their rules.”

“Because there doesn’t seem to be a consistency to them?” Sven let one eyebrow go up. “Well then, I’m going to tell you I really don’t care what kind of shit you three get up to.”

Keith swallowed, unsure of how to react to the apathy Sven showed. Normally the teachers went out of their way to get on his good side, or they went out of their way to try and make their team miserable. He glanced away, letting out a deep breath, swallowing, his hands clenching despite the pain.”

“Oh, this doesn’t mean I don’t have rules,” Sven stated. “The first rule I have for you three is not to drag others into your shit because that’s not fair to everybody else.”

Keith glared, noticing how Sven used rather strong language, but one of Sven’s eyebrows rose up.

“Yes, I’m using strong language because you seem so fond of it. Second rule, don’t pull crap where you or your teammates get hurt.” Sven pointed at Keith’s hands. “That means no more pummeling your fists to a pulp.” Keith of course opened his mouth to protest. “If you really want to learn to control that temper of yours as you said…” Which of course made Keith realized he’d managed to walk into that one. “… then I’ll teach you how to properly do it, starting with that sparring session I’ve postponed.”

“Screw…”

“Oh, I didn’t say that you wouldn’t be getting hurt. That’s a risk with any physical activity, but the idea is that you won’t blindly be hurting yourself anymore.”

“Screw you,” Keith muttered under his breath, yet he knew the teacher heard.

“Three. Don’t do your shit in front of me because I don’t _want_ to have to act like an authority figure, but because it’s my job to do so I’ll be forced to act.”

“Say what?”

“Tell your friend Lance that if I catch him smoking I will be taking his cigs away, so don’t get caught,” Sven continued glaring, but then he suddenly smirked as if he found the situation funny for some reason. “That said, there’s nothing in those rules which say you can’t pull pranks on me during your class period so long as the shit you pull doesn’t affect the rest of your classmates or get someone hurt.”

“What?” Keith stared at the man, his facial features softening.

“You heard me. I honestly didn’t mind you guys not showing in class today, but it would have been a lot more fun if you’d pulled a prank and lived up to this whole trouble image Iverson presented of you guys.” Sven’s facial features faltered. “That said, I need to ask regarding that girlfriend of yours.”

“Fiance,” Keith snapped, glaring at the man. “And Tamara is none of your business.”

“Aren’t you a bit young to have a fiancé?”

“I saved up for the ring, it’s expected of us and we’re seniors, so marrying once we get out of high school…”

“Okay. Okay.” Sven held up his hand, then lowered it. “Are you by chance sexually active?”

“ _That_ is fucking not any of your business.” Keith threw the pillow at him, frustrated he would even ask the question. “Get out.”

“Fine. Be sure to eat something. Oh, and on top of making sure our sparring match is rescheduled, you’ve been excused from your classes for the rest of the day and tomorrow’s classes. Your first time back in class is with me the day after tomorrow.”


End file.
